365great Day 155: Thailand

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
16 August 2013
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365great challenge day 155: thailandThailand is one of the most amazing countries I’ve been to. It has a little bit of everything I love in a place: beautiful weather, gorgeous landscapes, fascinating animals, quiet beaches, sprawling bazaars, amazing food, a rich culture, and relaxation treatments. I enjoyed both Phuket and Bangkok for their very different experiences and I absolutely loved the tour I took, which included an elephant ride, lunch on a floating restaurant (and a chance to drift on a raft), splashing around in a cute park with waterfalls, and (omg) petting tigers. I had so much fun relaxing by the beach, getting a wonderful hot stone massage from a very nimble old lady, and getting rides from strangers on Phuket Island. I equally enjoyed roaming the streets of Bangkok where I had THE most delicious pad thai I’ve ever experienced. And then I’d wander off to the Chatuchak market to get my shop on. So much to do, see, and appreciate. Thailand is such a great country and I can’t wait to go back.

Check out some of my posts from my trip to Thailand:

Tiger baby [feeding a tiger milk]

Pet clam & sea snail [the cool creatures I found at the beach]

Burrowing clams [entertainment at the beach]

Tiger-rific [petting tigers at the Tiger Temple]

Fish spas, the newest craze [oh what a fun experience to have fish eat at your feet]

A story of shopping and sandals [when a trip to the market yields some laughs]

Serendipity [more on my rides with strangers in Thailand]

 

365great Day 154: water boilers

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , ,
15 August 2013
1

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365great challenge day 154: water boilersI think just about every East Asian household has one of these. They’re as ubiquitous as rice cookers for those cultures. Growing up, I often had hot water to drink – yes, plain hot water. No honey, no sugar, no cocoa powder or even tea. It’s pretty normal for Chinese people to do that, but boy was it hard to get it out in restaurants! In recent years, it seems like American establishments are finally catching on and they no longer give me inquisitive looks if I request hot water. Even on a hot day, I’ll drink hot water since I’m very sensitive to cold things and cold water could make my stomach hurt. It’s always nice to have it easily accessible since I can power through half a dozen mugs of hot water in a few hours. Who wants to keep boiling a new pot each time? It’s so much more convenient to have many cups’ worth ready to go whenever I want it. For always giving me hot water when I want it, these are just great.

365great Day 153: high heel tape dispensers

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , ,
14 August 2013
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365great challenge day 153: high heel tape dispensersOk, not only are these just so adorable and a fun piece of flair for your desk, I think they’re actually a better design than your standard tape dispenser. Maybe it’s just me, but when I use those, I find the distance from the tearing point to the surface of the table is too small. I often need long strips of tape, which always get stuck to the table when I tear off a piece. It’s not a huge deal, but it’s a hassle. The high heel design allows for a much higher tear point so that’s less likely to happen. And I mean come on, how fun is it to have this brightening up your day? It’s a simple (but unfortunately not cheap) little solution that adds personality with functionality. I think that’s great.

365great Day 152: Ipsy

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , ,
13 August 2013
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365great challenge day 152: ipsyI joined Ipsy back in May and I initially intended to just try it out for a month or two, but it soon became addicting. It’s funny because before I knew about them, I had thought how cool it’d be if a company made all kinds of fun makeup bags. Then I stumbled upon their subscription bags and found that my idea was already being executed. I’ve really enjoyed the different shapes, designs, and materials of the Ipsy bags, but even more than that what’s keeping me is their products. For just $10 I get to try out a variety of makeup, skincare, and nail care items each month. I like that the sizes are deluxe samples or full sizes so you have enough to try the product a few times to see if you like it. It’s always fun to watch the spoilers come out and see the different combination of products you might receive. This month was the first time that IpsyMatch did an excellent job and sent me all items that I’d use (and exactly what my ideal bag was!). I’ve been introduced to so many great products and have swapped whenever I didn’t get what I wanted, which is a fun experience in itself. This is such a great way to try out beauty products!

[This post contains affiliate links. Signing up through them helps support my subscription and I’d be ever so grateful. 🙂 All opinions are my own and I received no compensation for this review.]

365great Day 151: origami

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , ,
12 August 2013
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365great challenge day 151: origamiOrigami is such a cool form of art. You take a piece of paper, fold it this way, crease it that way, and right before your eyes you can create so many different designs. I’m even more amazed at the people who came up with this paper folding art. How do you envision the complex set of folds and unfolds it takes to create images of animals, plants, and even clothing? With origami you can fold out everything from the elephant and ring I made here to cute hearts or crazy complex horses. It’s fascinating to me and very beautiful. There’s an elegance in the geometry of it all and a mysterious beauty that captivates me. I enjoy making forms out of a random piece of paper, sometimes complete with flapping wings or jumping abilities! How great is that?

 

365great Day 150: aloe drinks

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , ,
11 August 2013
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365great challenge day 150: aloe drinksI just wrote about these in my July favorites and I think they deserve a mention in my 365great as well. I really enjoy aloe drinks because they aren’t crazy sweet but they’re more hefty than most drinks due to the particles. I quite like having some pulp bits to chew on. It adds a nice texture to the drink, making it somewhere between a smoothie and liquid. I know that aloe is healing for the skin, so I figure it couldn’t hurt to drink it. At the least I like the taste when it’s mixed with other fruit flavors and I like that it doesn’t go away as fast as a regular drink would. Sometimes I want something light yet filling and this type of drink works great.

365great Day 149: Brookstone

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , , ,
10 August 2013
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365great challenge day 149: brookstoneWhat a fun store to explore. Brookstone has all kinds of awesome solutions to your problems (whether you even realized you had them at all). You can get massagers, technology accessories, gadgets, toys, and so much more. My most recent visit allowed me to enjoy their massaging zero gravity chair for 15 minutes of comfort. I also discovered they’re now selling fun little plants you can keep in your home, which you buy in store and have shipped straight to your door from wherever the plants are stored. I mean, you could really equip your home with some amazing stuff from this store. It’s a fantastic place to browse for gift ideas and other novelty items that can be quite practical too. I always enjoy stopping by and trying out their various knick knacks and I look forward to the day when I can start filling my house with some of those cool products. Brookstone is great not only because of the range of products they carry, but that they allow you to try out all that stuff as you please!

365great Day 148: squirrels

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , ,
09 August 2013
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365great challenge day 148: squirrelsEver since attending UCLA, my view of squirrels has never been the same. The campus is overrun by them and they’re so used to people they’re practically the bosses now. It’s amazing how bold they can get, stealing your food or coming right up to you. They seem to love almost all human food: sweet, salty, but not sour. These critters are quite entertaining in their own right and I’ve fed plenty of them. Still, they are wild and you never know when you might get bitten like I did once. They’re all over the place and you never know when one might scurry across your path. I left food out on the porch once, thinking the birds would get it, but then this squirrel came along! I was so amused by how it dragged its body along the railing to eat the food without having to take a step forward. What a goof. A lot of people may not like these creatures, but I find them rather fascinating and usually very gentle. I once got a chance to feed one once and it was amazing. I loved it! Someday I might want to see if it’s possible to have a pet squirrel. Until then, I’ll just observe these fellows when they cross my path and marvel at how great it can be to interact with them.

365great Day 147: Hukkster

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , ,
08 August 2013
1

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365great challenge day 147: hukksterHukkster takes the beauty of technology, where you can automate things, and empowers consumers to buy items at better prices. When you “hukk” something, Hukkster tracks it and you can set it to alert you when the price drops. Save time keeping track of when sales or discounts will bring down the price of those items you’ve been eyeing. For a long time, I had some American Eagle jeans hukked and I kind of forgot about them. Today I got an alert on a pair and it was down to $16!! Um, yes I’d LOVE jeans at that price, thank you. I went over the AE site and even though the site lists the jeans as going from $49.95 to $39.99 without mentioning the further discount to $16, once I added them to my cart I saw the appropriate price show up. I was so happy I actually found two other pairs on clearance and paid less than $45 for three pairs of pants (two jeans & one trouser). You could easily pay more for just one pair, so I’m pretty thrilled. This type of service is great!

365great Day 146: Facebook

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , , , ,
07 August 2013
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365great challenge day 146: facebookThe social media network that started it all. I remember back in 2004, I was getting ready to start college in the fall and there was this new thing called The Facebook trending. I ignored it at first, figuring it to be some silly fad, but when I got an invitation from a friend of mine who doesn’t do frivolous things, I decided to give it a chance. Before I knew it, I had found (and messaged) a ton of people set to take the same classes as me in fall quarter. Some of them replied and we struck up a friendship in the lonely month before school started when all my other friends had already started at their universities. UCLA is one of the last, if not the last school system to start up. From there, I started finding old friends from many of the other states I’d lived in, including childhood best friends all grown up. I loved Facebook for that, since when I was younger, every move meant losing contact with my entire social network. Back then it was either pay for long distance phone calls or write letters… so of course we did none of that – too expensive and too much effort! Over the years, my use of it has evolved from making sure I didn’t lose track of acquaintances to sharing all kinds of fun pictures. It’s nice that I can check in on friends at my leisure and get an idea of what they’re up to. For keeping us connected without constant effort, I value Facebook and it has always been my favorite social media site. It connected me back to a childhood I’d lost! Isn’t that great?

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